High Road/Low Road 08.29.08: Jesse and Festus

Posted by Sat & Chad Nevett on 08.29.2008

Jesse and Festus: Potentially great tag team, or absolute joke? Come and give us your view.
Plus, a lot of feedback on the Smackdown Diva's title, and not all of it talking about THAT belt!

Welcome back to the High Road/Low Road!

A brief explanation of the column: Uncletrunx takes the Low Road (negative view) on angles, gimmicks, and other wrestling related "stuff" while Sat takes the High Road (positive view).

The Results for the SmackDown Divas Title:

High Road: 32%
Low Road: 36%
Both Roads: 28%

Jesse & Festus

High Road:
One of my favorite things about tag teams is two partners who have two different wrestling styles. Some of the greatest tag teams have been two wrestlers who are good at two different things. Jesse & Festus have a ways to go before they are considered a great team, but I think that they have a ton of potential because they have the power wrestler with Festus and the speed/technical wrestler with Jesse.

Low Road: I agree with the principle. One only has to look at the Hart Foundation to see that a team of a power brawler and a technical wrestler can be a great team. However, where the Hitman and the Anvil were a great team at a time when tag team wrestling was extremely strong, Jesse and Festus are a joke team at a time when tag team wrestling itself is at best an afterthought and at worst a joke.


High Road:
One of the positives about Jesse & Festus is that they work well as a team. The reasons that I have for them working well as a team are that they always work a match based on their strengths. For example, I have noticed that Jesse always start mainly because he is the technical wrestler and really when was the last time the power wrestler started the match. Also, whenever the opposing team has the advantage, who is always the one being beaten. It is Jesse, which again makes sense because when he finally tags out, Festus comes in with his power offense. These are just a few of the reasons why Jesse & Festus work well as a team.

Low Road: What we have right there is the sheer predictability of the team. They are, at best, an average team which works tag team formula the way it has been done for years.


High Road:
I believe that the reason that Jesse & Festus have managed to get so over with the fans is that they have an interesting gimmick. The hillbilly gimmick has been done numerous times and it has been semi successful. But, adding a slight variation is the thing that has helped this gimmick. And of course, I am talking about the Festus and the ringing bells. This is an interesting gimmick because of the fact that it has not been done and there is so much that can be done with the gimmick.

Low Road: I believe that in 1997, Vince McMahon said in one of his famous interviews that WW(F)E fans were tired of having their intelligence insulted. I wish he'd go back and look at that again. Gimmicks like this, which have no realism at all and are at best comic relief and at worst an insult to the fans' intelligence should have remained in the early ‘90s.

High Road:
Jesse & Festus are a great team for the WWE because there is still so much that they can do with them. We still have not seen what happens to Festus when multiple bells begin to ring at once. We also have not seen a team intentionally ring the bell during the match. Plus, we have not seen what will happen to Festus if something happens to Jesse. There is still so much more that we can see from Jesse & Festus.

Low Road: I truly hope that what we see from Jesse and Festus is a whole load less idiocy with the bell and a slightly more realistic approach to booking them. At the moment, it looks like they are a poor cartoon version of Cade and Murdoch. I really have no desire to see other teams messing about with the bell to get Festus to stand and dribble. I'd rather watch wrestling and suspend my disbelief.


High Road:
SmackDown's tag team division has been in shambles for a long time because teams keep getting broken up. But, I think that this happens because the WWE feels that they have two very good teams in Jesse & Festus and Hawkins & Ryder. I think that the WWE feels that because of this they can just throw a tag team together and they should be okay. In a ways, it makes sense because if all of the teams were veteran teams, then the matchups would get kind of boring.

Low Road: Back in the late 1980s and more recently, in the late ‘90s, tag matches weren't boring. They were exciting and innovative. Why? Because tag teams were seen as a priority and pushed as such. Teams from the ‘80s such as the Hart Foundation, the British Bulldogs, The Rockers and Demolition, or teams from the late ‘90s such as Edge and Christian, the Hardys or the Dudleys were teams people cared about and the tag team championship was a big deal. Two tag teams do not make a division creditable at all, and having the champ and his current opponent win the tag belts as a plot device also devalues them to the point of worthlessness. It will take more than two teams who last more than a few months without being split up to prevent the WWE tag team scene being a joke; WWE chiefs have to care about it. Sadly, I don't see it happening.


High Road:
One of the things that have favored Jesse & Festus is the amount of promos that they got before they debut. It seems like the WWE always introduces teams just out of blue with no introduction. I think that is one of the reasons that Jesse & Festus have managed to get over with the crowd. Hopefully, the WWE realizes this and starts to do this more often because I think that this is one of the reasons why Jesse and Festus are so popular.

Low Road: Team Promos? One guy stands and dribbles throughout and it's a team that we accept as a threat? What we have here is a joke of a team in a joke of a division and sadly, it shows WWE's attitude towards tag team wrestling today.

High Road:

Low Road:


High Road:

Low Road:

Are you taking the High Road or the Low Road?

High Road
Low Road
Both Roads
OR

Simply write "High Road", "Low Road", or "Both Roads" in the comment section.

E-Mails:

These are all of the e-mails that we received this week. We do not respond to the actual e-mail, but the reply to your e-mail will be below.

MarBu13 Writes:

Both Roads. If WWE had created another Divas Title several years ago, maybe Trinity, Dawn Marie, Jazz, Molly Holly and Nidia would still be employed. A second women's title gives more women a chance to shine, and will keep them from hearing those dreaded words " good luck on future endeavors ". But this is WWE we are talking about and they just released Cherry, a solid worker a few weeks ago. They have no intention on creating a solid women's division. With the exception of a returning Gail Kim, Alicia Fox & Milena Roucka (the last two, only included because they received the minimum of two years' proper training), the WWE has no competent female workers to fall back on or to be brought in for some time.

Sat: I think you make some good points. It seems like the WWE would be more likely to keep more divas on the roster instead of releasing them, but then they go ahead and release Cherry.

Uncletrunx: I think that WWE releasing Cherry weeks before creating this belt shows you all you need to know about how seriously it will be presented in terms of in ring action.

Carlos Moreano Writes:

I would love to take the high road with the DIVAS.

Any man who takes the low road must be a-sexual or a homosexual.

I mean Come-on. They are sexy and beautiful women!!!

They have BREASTS and VAGINAS
Who cares if they do not know how to wrestle. It is all about T and A (TITS and ASS).

Sincerely,
a guy who loves PUSSY and TITS.

Sat: All I have to say about this email is that I appreciate you voting. But, I will say it is definitely one of the most interesting emails that we have received.

Uncletrunx: If I want to watch that sort of thing, there are a million and one websites, DVDs, magazines, etc which I could turn to. Having female genitalia and a certain degree of attractiveness does not automatically gain one the right to appear in a wrestling ring and wrestle a match, much less be considered a contender for a championship in WWE. When I watch the wrestling, I like to see wrestling. Attractive women are by no means a downside but if they're going to be competing in the ring, I'd like a certain amount of competence. For the record, I am neither asexual nor homosexual; I am fairly recently and happily married.
(April this year, as many readers will remember)

Comments:

411 has added a new feature. Below are the comments for last week's columns and our responses. The comments that will be included will be the ones that pertain to this week's column. Also, your comment will not be included if you are commenting on another reader's comment. The comments are as of ___________.

David Writes:

Definate high road on whether or not to have the title. No point having women wrestling if they have nothing to wrestle for.

Definate low road on the belt. Been a long time since WWE made a decent looking belt.

Sat: I think that if the belt becomes a seller for the female demographic, then it doesn't matter what it looks like.

Uncletrunx: I think the look of the belt is vital in terms of creating an image for the championship. This championship has nothing to do with wrestling if the look of the belt is what we go by.

M-X Writes:

Both Roads. I think they have the talent pool to keep two titles, they just won't ever use it right. Victoria can go but she's a joke, Nattie & McCool have been doing all right and then you have your Maryse's... but the whole 'they hire bimbos' argument has lost a lot of ground lately. In fact, it's lost enough ground that when I hear it I think it's just someone on auto pilot. The actual roster of females is good:

Beth, Mickie, Katie, Jillian, Candace, Melina, Nattie, Michelle McCool, Victoria, Kelly Kelly, Layla El, Maryse, Maria, Eve... I think you have a pretty good mix of pretty faces & decent workers.

And as far as those models go-- HEY, the divas need jobbers too! Is it so terrible if they're hot?!

Sat: Good point, the divas are going to need to have jobbers.

Uncletrunx: It's not auto pilot at all. If the division is going to sustain a title, then they need more than 2 jobbers, 2 jokes (one holding the belt) and 2 who are decent wrestlers, one of whom is scarcely out of developmental. But then, as the comments go, it doesn't seem to matter as long as you've got decent T+A and can work for 5 minutes without needing to ask for directions you're a title contender. C'est la vie.

Bloke Writes:

There's only ever been ONE Divas title match, and the "champ" has only appeared on SD, like, twice since winning the "title" it was a disgrace before there was a "champion" and it's a disgrace now.

Sat: I think that right now, the WWE is kind of ruining the division and making it like the crusierweight division. But, I don't see it disappearing because Vince likes the divas more than the cruiserweights.

Uncletrunx: T+A sells more than wrestling. If I sound cynical, it's because I am. Hell, I'm the low road guy, it's why I'm here!

Ryder Writes:

Low Road. The smart move would be just to have the Women's Champion (much like the Tag Team Champs) defend the titles on both Raw and Smackdown! It's like trunx wrote, no one cares who is face or heel, and all of the divas has the same bland personalities so no one really has reason to invest in them.

Sat: I just don't see the WWE getting rid of a set of tag titles and a women's title.

Uncletrunx: Nor do I, given that they add a blet a month. I just wish they would, and would book the remaining titles as if they meant something.

Michelle Writes:

Umm.. both roads. I'm more inclined towards high road because I enjoy the SD women's division more than RAW's personally and they NEEDED things to actually feud over which weren't ridiculous. However, I think it would have been a better idea to have the women's title be fully-fledged tri-branded (as it was when SD was born).

Sat: Again, it would be nice, but I just don't see it happening.

Uncletrunx: It won't happen. More belts = more things to sell to the kiddies.

Michael Writes:

Low Road, It's hard to take a title shaped like a butterfly of all things seriously. Plus the roster isn't really something to brag about. Michelle, Maryse, Victoria, Natalie, and Maria. Not a whole lot there with only Michelle and Neidhart being shown on a regular basis and the rest like Maria and Maryse are godawful.

Sat: True, not much to brag about, but it is a decent division. And as I wrote last week, I think that if the belt becomes a good seller, then it doesn't matter what it looks like.

Uncletrunx: To me, it's all about what we want from wrestling. If we're happy with a belt to sell to kids and a division with three realistic title contenders then this is great stuff.

The Great Captain Smooth Writes:

Both roads. On the one hand, it doesn't mean much now. On the other hand, Trish wasn't good at all when she began, so let's give it some time before we praise or condem it.

Sat: You make a good point. This is probably a wait and see situation.

Uncletrunx: As I've said before, I object to being forced to watch non wrestlers learn to wrestle on TV, then leaving to pursue "other ventures" when they get half decent (or being released) to get the next lot of swimsuit models in to learn to wrestle on TV...

Sid Writes:

michelle mccool n natalya shud have been drafted to raw instead of kelly kelly n layla..victoria already has been a 2 time women's champion..she doesnt need a push..but michelle n natalya wud have done wonders for raw..and they wud have also had a go at the most prestigious award for women in wwe..the women's championship..instead wwe burries smackdown divas by giving them a title that doesnt mean anything with honestly just 2 or 3 contendars..even if candice michelle returns to smackdown..4 women making a roster?..i wudnt count maria maryse or eve as wwe women wrestlers..raw has alot of thickness..to add to it n have ur entire women's roster on raw wud make so much sense..have ur world tag titles on smackdown and move away all tag team action to smackdown..get rid of the belts rider n hawkins have..they are fake and recent..the rest wud just be fine..make me wwe writer

Sat: Again, I don't see the WWE combining belts.

Uncletrunx: Nor me, but I wish they would. It would actually get a cynical old hack like me interested again, instead of tuning out and not really caring about anything apart from the two world titles.

Setobakura Writes:

High road. The women need a reason to fight and need something to show that they are a champion and compete with the women on RAW. Even though the belt was ripped straight from the "winx club", its a womens title for christ sake, what do you want on it, a skull and crossbones?

Sat: Good point. And I think that people were going to rip the belt no matter what it looked like.

Uncletrunx: I don't want a skull and crossbones, I just want it to look like a wrestling title belt rather than a Barbie accessory.

Ray A Writes:

High Road. The SmackDown Divas have been in need of a womens title for a few years now and giving them one was a great move. I'm not going to bother explain anymore because to be honest, I'm headed off to Vegas, bitches! But one last thing...The only problem is that it looks like the new ECW Title on crack!

Sat: i agree. I think there will be bumps early on, but it should be okay. Have fun in Vegas.

Uncletrunx: Enjoy Vegas. Don't go broke!

William Writes:

High Road, the SmackDown women deserve their own title, no matter how the belt looks.

Sat: I agree.

Uncletrunx: I disagree.

Christi Writes:

low road...the womens division in the WWE isnt good enough to have two titles, and this belt was ruined when Michelle McCool won it..shes a face diva that doesnt have enough fan support behind her for people to care about her being a champ, so therefore no one cares about the title. if Natalya had been champ first, the fans wouldve appreciated the history she had, and more importantly wouldve been behind Michelle as a chaser..now theyre behind Maria but still dont care about the belt. plus, Michelle has only had ONE solo match and that was right after she won the belt..so really theres no champ to care about, unlike when Mickie was champ and she was on every week and now Beth will be on every week

Sat: You make some good points. I would have perferred to have had Natalya win it too. I think that this comment is one of those that sums up all of the problems with the SmackDown's divas title.

Uncletrunx: Indeed. Why on earth they've booked it like this, I have no idea. Maria as the chaser? Then again, she's done playboy so she's bound to be in an elevated position...

EZMark Writes:

There's nothing wrong with having a woman's title on Smackdown, it's just a shame that it fits on Michelle McCool like a hoola-hoop.

Sat: Yeah, Michelle should not put the title around her waist.

Uncletrunx: This is a whole new point. Surely a wrestler needs to look like they're capable of at least being competative in a fight? If they look like a strong breeze would snap them in half, how are we to takethem seriously? I'm not advocating a whole womens division full of Russian Shot-Putters, but an athletic build at least should be mandatory. Especially on the champion.

17 Writes:

Both Roads

Low Road
That championship is just awful, the qualifying matches for it were a joke (poll matches, I mean really), the initial match buried a legitimately good women's wrestler in Natalya by having her tap out to an overused piece of eye candy, outside of Natalya and Victoria there are no women on smackdown to justify a title belt and the WWE would have probably been better off just trading Natalya and Victoria to RAW for Candice Michelle, Layla, and Kelly Kelly and keeping Smackdown as the dumping ground it was/is.

High Road
Here's how they could make it work. On occasion the WWE gets the sudden urge to push a diva despite her being nowhere near championship material, see Ashley, Candice Michelle, Michelle McCool, and Kelly Kelly when she (probably) poses for Playboy next year. Now when ever they suddenly get the urge they have a meaningless title they can reward them with while not damaging the real WWE women's division.

By the way, I love the idea of having three unique divisions for the three different shows, but do you really think if the WWE did that the women's title would be on the C show ECW? More to the point do you really think the tag belts would be on the A show RAW and the cruiserweight belt would be on the B show Smackdown? The WWE has shown it doesn't care about tagteams anymore and I don't think it ever cared about the cruiserweights, but it should be noted the WWE has always tried to add a little TNA (not the promotion) into their shows and lately have actually been doing a half decent job of pushing talented women like Mickie and Beth way better than they've been pushing most tagteams lately and most cruiserweights ever.

Please don't misunderstand me, this is not a knock on tagteams or the cruiserweights. I'm a big fan of all three of these divisions but I accepted long ago if I want half decent tagteam or cruiserweight matches I have to watch TNA (and I mean the promotion this time).

So with that in mind it would probably be the women's title on RAW, the tag belts on smackdown, and the cruiserweight title on ECW, which could actually be for the best.

ECW is a glorified developmental territory nowadays and if they can become known for displaying the stars of tomorrow and/or fast paced cruiserweight action which you won't see anywhere else in the WWE could actually help increase interest for a show which needs it much more than the established RAW. Plus with it being a one-hour show there is normally more of an emphasis on wrestling, and with cruiserweight matches it would be probably better to let the matches sell themselves as opposed to add overcomplicated storylines to them.

Then again if the WWE brought the cruiserweight title back on ECW that would probably mean Hornswoggle would just eventually win it again (if they didn't award it to him in the first place) once again making the cruiserweights and their belt worthless.

Sat: I thought the pole matches accomplished it goal and that was to make all of the divas look good. Good point about giving a women this title instead of the women;s title if they are going to appear in playboy. And as I have wrote above, I just don't see the wwe combining the belts.

Uncletrunx: The brand split I created was simply an example. The way you suggest it is, with hindsight, more logical and to be honest, I'd take it over what we have now. As for your high road /low road split, the high roads were all theoretical and I see none of them happening in reality.

Carnivore Writes:

I used to love High Road Low Road. I loved this for the first few segments, then it turned into a shouting match and I lost all interest...I'm sure you guys are trying but this ain't gettin' it, as they say.

Sat: I can't speak for Uncletrunx, but I have to say that I do not think that this has turned into a shouting match. Plus, if we were shouting wouldn't it be in all CAPS. What do you the readers think about this?

Uncletrunx: I THINK WE'RE STILL GIVING IT OUR ALL! I STILL BELIEVE WHAT I WRITE! SHUT UP! Seriously, I can assure you that we do try to come up with reasons behind the column. Some are better than others but ultimately, we're all wrestling fans with different views on what we want to see from wrestling.

Rob Writes:

I choose the High Road, but only because I am OCD and I love symmetry.

Sat: Hell, I'll take any High Road vote I can get.

Uncletrunx: I really have no way to respond to this, other than to suggest that you alternate your vote for the sake of symmetry!


Ange Writes:

Why do people still insist on saying Michelle McCool sucks? She has a good moveset and executes everything crisply. Her matches are fun to watch. She's hot. What else do you want? Perhaps she needs to be Japanese and ugly before the smarks can accept her.

Sat: I agree. She isn't the greatest, but she looks okay in the ring.

Uncletrunx: She's OK, but I don't see her as the person to carry the division and make it credible. As the one to get people ready for the champ, yes. As the champ herself, no.

Your reasons for taking the High Road, Low Road, or Both Roads and suggestions for future High Road/Low Road are welcome at [e-mail] or in the comment section. Your reply will be included in next week's column.